It’s a rare occasion when I agree with Coun. Joe Mihevc, but he is quite correct in suggesting that as far as city council goes, Mayor Rob Ford is running out of friends.

Speaking to Sun City Hall Bureau Chief Don Peat, Mihevc made this astute point after the 2013 budget passed: “You have not seen, frankly, most of the people that he calls his enemies go after him with the strength that his own allies have gone after him.”

As Peat noted, so many of Ford’s victories “have been marred by a loss.”

What is noteworthy about this is that many of those who have been raining on the mayor’s victory parade are, or were, allies. In other words, it’s “friendly fire.”

The incidents that captured the most headlines were the subway fiasco involving TTC Chair Karen Stintz, Coun. Giorgio Mammoliti quitting Ford’s executive committee on the same day the mayor was ordered out of office for violating the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act; almost everything his brother, Coun. Doug Ford says, and Coun. David Shiner, who supported the now-reversed plastic bag ban.

There have, however, been many other examples which have contributed to a slow erosion of support for the mayor over the last two years.

Shortly after the 2010 election, and with some help from the mayor’s office, Ward 18 Coun. Ana Bailao was able to make good on a campaign promise which contributed to her winning the ward. She committed to her residents she would get nearly 70 parking stalls on Dundas St. West restored, after the previous councillor had them removed, causing havoc for local businesses and residents.

Bailao’s motion was passed unanimously at council and she made a splash when she showed up in the ward, with the mayor in tow, to take credit for the reversal.

The assumption was, wrongly, that Bailao was now firmly in Ford’s camp.

Things changed when the core services review got underway and Bailao, and many other councillors, backed away from Ford’s agenda, after pressure from unions and special interest groups that they would challenge them in the next election.

When Ford wanted to sell hundreds of Toronto Community Housing Corp. homes to raise money to address the $750-million capital repair backlog, the mayor had to capitulate and put Bailao in charge of figuring out what to do with the TCHC’s stock of single-family homes. The end result was a timid, but more widely palatable, recommendation to sell only 55 homes, a far cry from the original 564 homes, meaning another loss for Ford.

As an interesting side note for political junkies, when Bailao had her alleged impaired driving mishap, she made one of her first phone calls for help to the mayor’s office.

Ford also got grief from members of his own executive. Councillors Jaye Robinson and Michelle Berardinetti did not shy away from speaking about their frustration with the mayor’s antics and lack of co-ordination from his office.

Remember those ferris wheels and monorails Coun. Ford wanted for the waterfront?

Robinson was one of the first on the executive to speak out against any change in plans to the waterfront. She also didn’t mince words after the plastic bag ban debacle, putting the blame squarely on the mayor and his office.

Berardinetti not only quit the executive, last year she publicly left the budget committee and still saved most of her criticism for some of the mayor’s strongest supporters.

Berardinetti and Coun. Paul Ainslie, who chairs the zoo board, among other committees, had a very public spat over moving the zoo’s three elephants.

This revealed that not only could the mayor not get along with his executive, its members often weren’t able to work with each other.

Before you suggest Rob Ford has a problem working with women, the fact is male councillors have been fleeing from Ford as well.

Coun. Mike Del Grande has just bailed as budget chief, Mammolitti quit executive as previously discussed, and even Coun. Denzil Minnan-Wong, in charge of getting garbage collection contracted out, was critical of the mayor’s budget antics last week in speaking in favour of his budget and then voting against it.

It begs the question — why has there been so much mutiny against the mayor?

Certainly Ford’s embarrassing distractions have caused much angst for his team, even though the fact Ford was able to get his budget passed shows he can work with others.

Crunch time will come when the mayor learns if his appeal for violating the MCIA is successful.

If it isn’t, and he’s tossed from office, he’ll soon learn who his real friends are — if he has any left.

Mayor Rob Ford’s council support continues to erode

It’s a rare occasion when I agree with Coun. Joe Mihevc, but he is quite correct in suggesting that as far as city council goes, Mayor Rob Ford is running out of friends.
Speaking to Sun City Hall Bureau Chief Don Peat, Mihevc made this astute point after the 2013 budget passed: “You have not seen, frankly, most of the people that he calls his enemies go after him with the strength that his own allies have gone after him.”
As Peat noted, so many of Ford’s victories “have been marred by a loss.”
What is noteworthy about this is that many of those who have been raining on the mayor’s victory parade are, or were, allies. In other words, it’s “friendly fire.”